Italian-Canadian Meat Pie - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds ground pork
1 tablespoon fennel seed, or to taste
1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste (optional)
1 teaspoon salt
5 eggs
1 1/2 cups grated Asiago cheese
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 pastry for a 9-inch double crust pie

Preparation

Preheat an oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
Place a skillet over medium heat; cook the ground pork in the skillet with the fennel seed, red pepper flakes, and salt until completely browned, breaking the pork into small pieces as it cooks. Remove from heat and allow to cool completely.
Combine the ground pork, eggs, Asiago cheese, and bread crumbs in a large bowl; use your hands to mix thoroughly.
Line a 9-inch pie plate with one of the prepared pastries. Fill the pie with the pork mixture. Place the remaining pastry over the pie and press the edges together to seal. Be sure to cut steam vents into the top pastry.
Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes; reduce the heat to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and continue cooking until the pastry is browned and the filling is bubbling a bit, another 20 to 30 minutes. Remove from oven and allow the pie to cool 5 to 10 minutes before cutting to serve.